Governor.



titan era is na rate .ABTHURJ. Donovan am) ERANK rononnr, an, or new Yams, n. Y. i

GOVERN 0B.

Application fiiedjipril 12, 1918.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, ARTHUR J. boxe- VAN and FRANK Pon'ouxr, J12, citizens of the United States. and residents of the hon ough of Manhattan, in the city, county, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Governors, of which the following is .a specification.

This invention relates to automatic governing means for internal combustion motors, wherein the fuel passage intermediate the carbureter and intake manifold is provided with a throttling device in the form of a'free piston, actuated by the motor suetion; which, in contracting the fuel passage,

wardly applied to an extended, or open po Other features and advantages of our said invention .will hereinafter app ar.

In the drawing Figu 1 a vertical sectional view of our improth governing device.

Fig. 2 isv a section on the line of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional i iew of a modified form of our governintrdevice.

Fig. 4 is a section on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3, and

F ig. 5 is a detail, enlarged, of the "acuum. control valve. I

In the example of our inventionpresented in this application we have shown it to -comprise' a gravity valve. cylindrical in form, and functioning as a free piston under the suction influence of the motor piston,

in aspirating the fuel chargesfto automaticallv limit the capacity of the toe] passage.

Thus, let 1 indicate the intake manifold of a motor and Q'the carbureter. these elements being connected by an intermediate, cylindrical communicating device composed of an upper portion 3, having flange 4. and a lower portion 5, having: flange 6; The portions 3 and 5 may be united as'bv the screw threads 7 and 8. and they have flanges 9 and 10,. whereby they may respectively Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 7, 31%319.

Serial Ii'o. 228,286.

be connected with the manifold and carbureter.

The lower portion 5 is shown as provided, at its upper end, with an internal, annular recess 11, in which is fitted a ollow, cylindrical member 12. that is seated upon the shoulder 3 forming the base of recess 11; while the thickness of wall of said member 12 causes it to extend into and contract the passage through said portion5. Also, said member 12 has an upperradial flange 1%, that lies between and in abutting relation with the opposed ends of portions 3 and 5, although the diameter of said member 12 is less than the outside diameter of said opposed ends.

The portion 3, where it is provided with the thread '2', which is internal, is bulged out annularly, as at 15, whereby an annular clearance 16 is provided between the outer surface of fiangel i and the portions 3 and 5.

This clearance 16 is intended to serve an air passage and it has con'nnunication .with the outside atmosphere through an orifice 17 in portion 3.

A free piston, consisting of a tubular member 18, fits slidably within member 12,

said piston however being of greater length than member 12, and having a lower radial flange 19. that its shdably within lower portion 5, below 5 wardlv extending flange 20 at the base of said lower portion Thus an annular chamber 21 is provided between flange 19 and the under surfaoeoi' n'iember 12, and is bounded concentrically by the exterior wall of tubular member 18 and the interior Wall of lower portion 5, said chamber being contractible and expansible respectively by the upward and downward more ments of the free piston. v

It will be understood that the tubular member 18 forms a section oi the passageway, in the governing device. for the fuel charges, which are communicated from the carbureter to the motor. but the particular function of the free piston is to serve as a valve or throttle to control or regulate the volumetric capacity of the fuel charges aspirated to the intake manifold per motor piston stroke. Therefore a series of small orifices 22, increasing in size in an upward direction, are provided in the Wall of tubular member 18. to form a means of comoulder 1 5, and is limited, in its downward movement as by an.1n-

munication between the fuel passageway.

and chamber 21; so that, under the suction pull of the inotor, in'aspirating its suppl of carbureted air, some of the suction pu l iscaus'ed to partially exhaust chamber 21 of .the air therein and as applied against the i v and in spaced relation with the upper perimeter of tubular member 18, the spacing aforesaid being at the maximum to permit unrestricted passage of fuel mixture when the free piston is seated in its lowermost position, as upon flange 20.

The range of movement of the free piston in the upward direction brings its perimeter into near relation with the cone 25, where the fuel passage is restricted to the lowest throttling limit,

It is thus our purpose to receive full charges of fuel mixture,

to enable the motor while providing means to automatically cause that supply to be diminished under certain conditions of motor operation,

For instance, the free piston being a gravity valve, in a low position because then the extent of She suction force exerted upon the chamber 1 will be insuflicient to lift said gravity valve; but, as this suction force increases with the augmentation of motor piston speed, then it will take efi'ect'upon the chamber 21, lifting the gravity valve and thereby restricting the area of the fuel passage, whereby the diminished volume of admitted fuel mixture will tend to slacken' the motor speed; In normal'operation of the motor the free piston or gravity valve will be found to hover at an intermediate point in its range of movement for the supply of a volume of fuel mixture suited to a predetermined rate of travel.

When the motor speeds to the point of drawing the gravity valve upwardly to near its throttling limit, also contracting the chamber 21 to its limit, it becomes necessary to enable the gravity valve to open very quickly for the introduction of ample fuel charges. Therefore we provide means for breaking the vacuum in chamber, 21 by putting it in communication with the atmosphcre. v

Therefore themember 12 may be hollow, and its base 26 has an orifice 27, in which is seated a needle valve 28, whose stem 29 depends through and a predetermined distance below said orifice, so that it may be met and raised by the upper surface. of flange 19 'when the free piston has risen to near the point of its maximum throttling action. The valve '28 is in this, manner'raised' from its seat, and, by means'of an orifice 3O 1b,,flange will, at low motor speed remain 14, opening into clearance 16, it will be apparent that communication is established between chamber 21 and the atmosphere, by way of orifice 17. Upon the establishment of this communication between the chamber 21 and the atmosphere, the vacuum in said chamber is broken and the free piston will fall at once by its own gravity against the motor tension applied rearwardly of said piston thereby opening up the throttle and enabling the motor to aspirate satisfying fuel charges.

As the free piston thus falls, it releases the needle valve 28, which again becomes seated, and thus closes the chamber 21 again to atmospheric influence. In the modification shown in Figs. 3 and 4, in which views the same reference characters designate those parts of the device which correspond therewith in Figs land 2; we

have introduced additional features, for the purpose of rendering the free piston more sens tive to its automatic control by the motor suction forces, thereby -enabling the throttle to maintain a fairly steady fuel flow,

to satisfy a predetermined rate of piston speed in normal regulated travel of the motor vehicle.

Thus, in said modification, the free piston is in two parts, viz.: the tubular member 30, slidable in cylindrical member 12*, and coacting, as a throttle with the cone 25; said member 30 having the orifices 22 which communicate with chamber 21; and the annulus 31, fitting slidably within the lower cylindrical portion 5, said annulus having an inward flange 32, which provides a seat for the radial flange 33 of member 30.

Where our, improved governing device is employed with the open mouth type of carburetor, having an unrestricted fuel How, we may provide, at the lower portion of the fuel passage, a centered choke device, as 34 ,jserving to contract said pasasge, especially when the free piston is seated, by gravity, upon the base flange 20, at which time a concentrio passage of minimum area is left between the choke device 34 and the adjacentportion of said free piston, for idling, with the throttle closed down.

The cylindrical member 12*, seated within lower portion 5, is here shown as of skirt or inverted cup shape, to thus comprise an upward extension of the chamber 21; and the stem 29 of valve 28 depends into said chamber extension. It will be noted, in Fig. 5 that a knife edge seat 35 is provided for valve 28, ahd that the under surface of'the valve seat material is cupped out at 36, with communicating orifices 37, this arrangement being intended to facilitate the functioning the form of our device shown then opens valve '28, thus breaking the vacuum, so that. said free piston wvill fall quickly by. gravity to the full open throttle position; in the modified form of Figs. 3 and 4, the operation is as follows Upon starting up the motor, and wlth theexcrcise of suction in chamber 21, the two parts 30, 31 of the free piston will move upwardly together, the aspirating tension of the motor overcoming the combined weights of these members, and the passage past the choke device 3-]: opening up, so'that an adequate supply of fuel mixture is available. With the upward movement of the free piston, throttling action occurs between it and the cone 25, and the tendency of the "motor to race or run at an undesired speed is thus prevented. -But the desideratum is to maintain as well as possible the hovering position of said free piston at about the point where it .will permit the passage of a duly regulated fuel flow.

Therefore the member 30 is relieved from theweight of the annulus 31 at a given point in its path of'travel, the annulus being checked at such point, where it is removed from the sustaining influence of aspirating force, while the member 30 is left free to continue its movement. As shown, the lower edge 38 of member 12 extends into the upward path of the annulus 31, so that when said annulus, in rising, meets the obstruction thus presented, it is arrested, and is then free to fall by gravity.

With the annulus'arrested at its upper most position, and than free to-fall against only the motor tension as rearwardly applied, it will serve as a balance valve, to admit such fuel quotas as will satisfy the motor at the governed speed. The member 30 will then also be free to drop as the motor slows down under governed speed.

Variations may be resorted to within the spirit and scope of ourfsaid invention and parts thereofused without others.

We claim v ,1. Speed regulating means for internal oon'ibustion motors, comprising a gravity-return, fuel control valve, adapted to operate under the aspiratory pull of the motor and the exhausting of air from the forward path of said valve, whereby said valve is adapted to function in governing the volumetric fuel supply, and automatic means.

for permitting the readmission of'air in said forward path, thus enabling the gravity return of said valve. 5

I 2. In an internal combustion motor havin ,Q' a carburetor and a fuel passage. the com hination of a gravity return, fuel control valve, said valve adapted to be controlled tl'lrough the character ofthe vacuum created by variable motor speed, to govern the volu metric fuel supply, and automatic means, functioning when said valve is near the limit of its throttling movcn'ient, to break the vacuum relatively to said valve, thus permitting its gravity return.

In an internal combustion motor having a carburetor and a fuel passage, a gravity return free piston comprising a throttle, said piston adapted to be actuated by the aspiratory pull of the motor, whereby the volumetric fuel supply is governed; and automatic means, operable when said piston is near the limit of its throttling movement, to modifythe influence of the aspiratory pull with relation to said piston.

4. In an internal combustion motor having a carburetor and a fuel passage, the combination of a gravity return, hollow, free piston, included in said passage, said piston adapted to function "as a fuel throttle, a chamber in which said piston works, an air inlet to said chamber, a gravity valve normally closing said inlet, and. means of communication between said chamber and passage, whereby the fuel raising suction pull of the motor also serves to operate said piston, and said piston, when near the end of its throttling stroke, serves to open said valve, thereby diminishing the su tion pull relatively to said piston, thus permitting said piston to return to a throttle open position.

5. In an internal'combustion motor having a carbureter and a .fuel passage, .a two part free pistoncomprising a throttle, said piston adapted to be actuated by the aspiratory pull of the motor to operate said piston, whereby the volumetric. fuel supply is governed, means for arresting: the upward move ment of one part of said piston independently of the continued movement of the other part thereof, and automatic means for-reheving both piston parts from the influence of the motor aspirating pull.

ARTHUR J. DONOVAN. .FRANK POKORNY, JR.

Witnesses.

F. W. BARKER, A. B. BARKER. 

